Lanktarna
The Grand Duchy of Lanktarna is a founding state of the British Empire. It has merged with the Kingdom of Celestis to create the United Kingdom of Celestis and Lanktarna. History The history of Lanktarna is bound up with the history of Bavaria as Bavaria forms the very heartland of the nation. In 865 Louis the German, King of East Francia, died and passed his domain of Bavaria to his son Carloman. However, Carloman died less than a month after taking the throne. It was at this point that a noble family from Lower Saxony took the throne of the stem duchy of Bavaria for themselves. This dynasty, the Lanktarnans, ruled Bavaria until its inclusion within the Grand Duchy of Lanktarna. The Lanktarnan rulers of Bavaria fought several wars against Magyar invaders successfully, the Lanktarnan Duke of Bavaria led German forces to final victory over the Magyars in 955 at the Battle of Lechfeld. As part of this victory, Bavarian borders expanded southwards towards Venice. Trade between Bavaria and Venice became incredibly important between the mid 10th century and the 16th century. Lanktarnan Bavaria was under the jurisdiction of the Frankish Kingdom to the west as well as the Holy Roman Empire. In 1292, Celestans invaded and conquered France. This toppling of Frankish authority allowed greater autonomy in the German states of the Holy Roman Empire as the Celestans did not seek to control them initially. This changed in 1405 when Celestis again aggressively expanded north and east. Much of the northern Holy Roman Empire capitulated to the Celestan armies. As the northern states fell, the Lanktarnan rulers of Bavaria rallied the southern states and with the threat of such a coalition the Celestan armies halted their advance. Lanktarnan Bavaria maintained their coalition for many years, allowing the Lanktarnan dynasty to exercise extensive authority over the other German and northern Italian states. This influence was challenged in 1506 when the Celestan King claimed the Crown of the Holy Roman Empire for himself. The Lanktarnan ruler of the time, Otto III, opposed the claim. In 1508 the Celestan King set sail from Celestis for the mainland to travel to Aachen to be crowned Holy Roman Emperor. In response, Otto III sent an army of some 8000 men to occupy Aachen. The resulting war was brief and bloody, Celestan armies clashed with Bavarian and coalition forces along the Celestan borders. Otto’s armies defeated many of the Celestan forces sent to oppose them and encircled Aachen. The Celestan King then sued for peace. In 1532, the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V abdicated the Imperial throne and dissolved the Holy Roman Empire. In response, the Duke of Bavaria, Threx I, entered into negotiations with many of his allies in the coalition against Celestis. With only a little forceful persuasion, the allies agreed to form a new sovereign state; the Grand Duchy of Lanktarna with the Duke of Bavaria named Grand Duke. The new state was invaded by renewed Celestan armies under Edmund III, but were defeated by the Grand Duke in a series of brief skirmishes. Threx then turned his armies south and annexed the wealthy Venetian Republic. Lanktarna was now a powerful force in Europe and opposed to the Kingdom of Celestis. This changed when in 1576, King Peter II of Celestis and Grand Duke Threx III of Lanktarna met and joined together in Reformation against the Catholic Church. The two powers broke away from the See of Rome together and became the largest Protestant states in the world. This action was the beginnings of a powerful and solid alliance known as the 2 Lions of Europe; only briefly interrupted when Celestis fell under the Ori yoke. Lanktarna sent missions out to the New World in the 19th century and annexed the Canadian lands in the north of that continent. Similarly, the land known as the Ivory Coast on the western seaboard of Africa was annexed around the same time. Lanktarna absorbed these provinces into the Grand Duchy completely and were given complete representation in Lanktarnan government. In May 2008, Skywalker Threx I ascended to the throne of Lanktarna as Grand Duke and was also bestowed with the new Imperial title of Crown Prince when he took Lanktarna into the British Empire, solidifying their alliance with Celestis, so much so that the 2 states are to be united under the Lanktarnan Royal House upon the King of Celestis’ death. The Grand Duke has spent much time and money on developing the infrastructure and improving the quality of life in Lanktarna’s impoverished province in West Africa. Scholars have called this soft imperialism; as it is not conquest but annexation and naturalisation fully into the Lanktarnan system. That the Grand Duke is so adamant to improve the situation for all his subjects is testament to this sense of unification rather than the traditional imperial model of core and periphery. Government Since the early 20th century, Lanktarna has whole-heartedly embraced democracy. Representative institutions have existed throughout the lands that constitute Lanktarna since at least the 13th century but they were never truly democratic until the 20th century. The political system of Lanktarna requires 2 representative bodies; the Senate of Lanktarna and the High Council. The Senate forms the legislature and are elected every 4 years through a system of STV voting. This proportional system minimises wasted votes. The executive branch of government is separated from the legislature and constitutes the High Council and the Grand Duke. The High Council consists of 8 directly elected members who serve for a renewable term of 4 years. The Grand Duke plays a key role in liaising with both the Senate and the High Council and has the final sanction on laws. However, should a petition be made against any law with a minimum of one thousand signatures, the law must be subject to a public referendum. In this way, Lanktarna operates a form of direct democracy.